2 days ago
'It's been 4 days…': Punjab man's wife, her mother missing in Kishtwar disaster
Mandeep Saini came with his wife to her parental home in Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir, where she celebrated Raksha Bandhan on August 9. He stayed three days and left for home in Punjab on August 12 morning, for her wife to follow in a few days. She left with the family for a pilgrimage to the Chandi Mata Mandir in Machail just hours later, and is missing since flash floods hit the route to the shrine that same afternoon. Search and rescue operation underway after flash flood triggered by cloudburst at Chasoti village in Kishtwar district, Jammu and Kashmir. (PTI)
At least 60 people, most of them pilgrims to the Hindu shrine, were killed in the disaster triggered reportedly by a cloudburst. Bodies are still being recovered from Chasoti village and its surroundings.
"A day after a returned, on August 13, I got a call from my wife's brother-in-law. He told me about the cloudburst and said that my wife and her mother were lost," Saini told ANI. They were a group of eight on the Machail Mata Yatra, but six are now on their way back after being rescued.
'I went back to Punjab on the morning of August 12, around 7 am. Around 10.30 am the same day, she went for darshan to Machail Mata Mandir,' Saini said, 'It's been four days, and we still have no clue where (my wife and my mother-in-law) are. My mind is not functioning. I last spoke to her at Udhampur station."
He sought government help: 'I have no other request except to please find them.'
Meanwhile, security forces intensified the rescue and relief operations in the area. Major General APS Bal of the Indian Army, which is leading the efforts, said the army had reached the site within 45 minutes of the disaster. 'All the security forces are trying their best to rescue as many people as possible from the area affected by the cloudburst. We are also providing relief to the local people who have suffered due to this disaster,' he said on Saturday.
Earlier, on Saturday, J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah visited the affected areas and met affected families. He confirmed the recovery of 55 bodies so far, with many people still missing. Expressing deep sorrow, he announced compensation from the CM's Relief Fund: ₹2 lakh for the family of each deceased; ₹1 lakh for severely injured; and ₹50,000 for minor injuries, besides compensation for damage to buildings.
